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How to Carve Netsuke and Miniature Sculpture: Free PDF Download This is a link to a detailed 361 page instruction book on how to carve netsuke and miniature sculpture. The file is in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.

It requires Adobe Acrobat Reader http://sterlingsculptures.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Carving_Netsuke.pdf

Just finished my entry for this year’s kith. As the only 2 EDC knives you can really carry in the U.K. (that are not folders) are a Kirpan and a Sgian Dubh I opted for the latter. Folders and a Kirpan are a bit beyond my current skill level. Unfortunately I don’t have any interesting WIP shots as they had to be censored for swearing . Thank goodness for the time extension. I would have finished on the first deadline if it wasn’t for Murphy. The first blade took some belt bump when I got carried away doing power finotiobing. Getting rid of this got the blade too thin. By this time the handle was made. Fitting a handle to a blade seems to be easier than the other way round. The second blade was forged too small, the third ground too thin. Fourth time lucky. Soon I will have some nice small paring knives . The blade is spring steel measuring 2 & 15/16”. AOL is 7”. There is a small false edge and some decorative serrations (firsts for me). The handle is blackthorn with brass and black fibre bolster and spacers and features a (epoxy resin filled) wild boar tusk (another first). I experimented with staining the other tusk with potassium permanganate and sanding the highlights but this didn’t look particularly attractive. The handle is a bit thick for a sgian dubh to be honest but I was limited by the tusk thickness in how thin I could go. Tomorrow I will make a sheath and do the final sharpening.

Finished this no frills 5.5" petty in 26c3 steel(63-64hrc, yikes!). The first of a batch of three. I tried to focus on ergonomics rather than aesthetic. I find it very comfy and nimble. I will take better pics when it's bigger brother is done .

5160 high carbon, African bubinga scales

I got all of the components except for the pommel nut roughed out and the guard bent after work today. There is still a lot of handle work to get done but it's getting there. There are a couple of minor flaws in the twisted guard but an acetylene torch will take care of that.

Nice Joel!

I do multiple short etches (5 mins ish), scrubbed with a pan scourer and dish soap in between (like my american lingo ? ) When you can just about feel a bit of topography stop and clean it up. You can always etch more after if you dont like the effect. Im not into this 'setting the oxides' thing, I like to know all scuz has gone from the blade as I mostly do chefs knives. I sand with 1000g wet and dry on a hard backing to hit the high spots, and thats what makes it pop. Also hit it with some flitz or metal polish, on a piece of leather glued to a hard backing. One observation I have is that blades look different 'in the hand' to the photographs people post on line. In my experience, sometimes the shiny Ni. layers look like the 'black' layers in a photo as they are reflecting something dark. The one below in the photo looks way more contrasted in the pics than it does in the hand. (the photo is straight from my phone, no editing)

Its too expensive to do your learning on for sure! Makes messing a billet up all the more painful ! The $15 is money well spent when it turns a knife from a $250 dollar one to a $300 one, all other things being even!

Should have some progress pictures this weekend, still no liner but will have it all painted and assembled until I can get some. Going to fire it soon. Tempting to just fire it unlined.. probably pretty even heat if the whole thing is glowing red lol

Looks sweet, man! Bold pattern.

Very cool!

Not been sharpened yet.

Hebrew national manufactures hot dogs. I like Nathan's better though. Does this make me anti-Semitic? It sure makes me want hotdogs

Glad I read the name on the front of the book before I made an arse of myself criticizing someone of copyright violation. Thanks again for your generosity, Tom. Doug

I have just read a thread on another knifemaking forum where a remark was misunderstood and even when it was clarified there was a difficulty by some in excepting the INTENT of the remark against their PERCIEVED intent so my take is that if the posters intent was not derogatory but was taken wrong then an opportunity to expand/explain should always be given and excepted if the intent was not antagonistic.

Looking good Doug, but oh my, is it Christmas already?

I'll try test firing the oven before insulation to see if it can reach 500 centigrade without.

Maybe testing how sharp a knife was... and it was pretty sharp!